told me in a rage That I liue like a Lady vnto her I saith she care for all things which be done I serue the Swine I giue the Pulhens meat I fret I chide I neuer am at rest And thou doest nought but walke the pleasant fieldes Thy greatest labour is a meere delight I but quoth I thy mother tels thee so When she doth chafe and chide with thee because She would haue thee be pleasde with thine estate But if she might a Queene or Empresse be She would not leade a single life againe Some other talk would better please my mind I am not yet disposde saith she to wed Know that thou art not first I haue repeld Cease therefore yet I can nor will not wed Then I replyde if thou wilt not me loue A simple swaine loue me a noble Knight That Knight I am whom lately thou espiedst Range through the plaines vpon a courser braue Whose shape diuine whose hart-alluring forme Hath made such brackes in mine vnspotted heart That hoping to obtaine thy wisht-for loue Setting apart my fame and dignity I am content thou seest to be a swaine O would I might be still a Swaine so that I might once get thy chiefe desired loue In faith Sir Knight saith she I am not her You take me for haue you none to delude And mocke saue with this meane attire And so easily wonne with cogging words Or doe I weigh your valiant chiualrie I care not for your magnanimity I set not by your noble feates in armes Tis not your Knighthood not your high exploytes Your honour birth nor skie-surmounting fame That can make Flora yeeld to lewd desire Although the gods haue made vs poore and base They haue not also made vs lewd and light I dayly see and by experience finde That they which clime the high'st haue greatest fals You see that shrubs and little bushes stand When stately oakes with winds ar ouerthrowne The little cottage stands when turrets high Are subiect to the force of euerie blast We Swaynes can sit and play on oaten pipes When mightie men are vext with high afyayres We thinke that we be rich ynough if we Can but expell a bare and needy life We thinke our cloaths are fine ynough if they Will couer vs and driue away the colde Then cease sir Knight leaue off your fayned sute The law of nature seemes it to resist Two things contrarie neuer can agree My birth is meane yours noble I am poore You rich alas what kind of match is this Here at she staid and I replyed thus No Flora no tis not your meane estate Nor ofpring vile which can detract my loue Loue is a god regarding no estate It striketh where and when and whom it list It maketh rich and poore haue all one mind It maketh prince and people all alike It maketh swaines and high-conceited Knights To beare one heart one mind and both content Then Flora come thou shalt be my true-true-loue Cassanders onlie comfort and delight In steed of sweet and redolent perfumes Thy dulcet breath shal recreate my heart Thine eyes shall be mine onely looking glasse Thy cheeks shall be my chiefest librarie In steed of sacrifice vpon thy lips Ile offer vp a thousand kisses sweet Which I will of more price and value deeme Than twentie thousand Indies can affoord Come Flora come if we two louers true Into the shadie fields together walke Sweete Philomela an hundred sundry notes Shal for our welcomes sound in leauie-woods If on the banks or Poplar-bearing brims Of Christall Humber we do please to walke Great Dolphins shall aboue the water rise And for our solace seeme to make great sport The Marmaids shal looke out from siluer lakes And greet vs with an hundred merrie songs The Naydes Nymphs Nereides and Faunes The Satyrs Fayries and each rurall power Abandoning their fragrant fields and springs About our lodging shal resort and sing Then thinke not Flora that thy meane estate Nor base degree shall alter this my loue Thou seest I haue my honour set apart And am content to be as thou an heard My concubine I meane thee not to make Nor paramour while beauty doth endure But take mine hand mine heart and faith also Ye Gods bear witnes thou shalt be my spouse And loyall wife till cruell Atrapos Dissolue the fatal thrid of this my life No longer could she now withstaÌ„d the brunts And hard assaults of Cupids fiery darts But casting armes about my tender necke Armes whiter than the new-distilled milke Sent foorth these glad hart-reuiuing words What more than Delian musick do I heare Which ouer-cloyes my soule with sweet content Could gods haue better pleased Floras mind Could Fortune haue bestowd a greater gift No my Cassander no my sweetest sweet Had all the gold which Indie rich affoords Had all the gems which Tagus rich doth yeeld Been proferd me might I haue been espousd Vnto the greatest Monarch vnder heauen Yet wold not I haue iudgd them half so much In value as the least and smallest part Of this thy kindnes proffered vnto me Now therefore sith the gods fate haue been So beneficiall as to grant the thing I chiefly wisht take here mine hand heart Take here my faith Cassander that I wil Whilst life doth last whilst breath in me remaines More faithfull be and constant vnto thee Than was Vlisses spouse vnto her loue These words she spake and seald them with a kisse A kisse more rich in price than all the gems Which Tethis hangs about Apollos necke Who then had felt but halfe the sugred ioyes And sweet contentments of vs Louers twaine Would haue supposde no ioy no blisse in heauen No sportnor solace like to that had bene But Phaebus now displaide his fierie beames And fields on each side were repleat with heards My Flora fearing least it should be told Her father that she did'a stranger loue Wild me depart and goe vnto my flocke I went from thence with speed but not so far But that ech might all day the other see Good Lord how manie day lie did I see Sue to my sweet-heart to obtaine her loue There came Alexis beautifull in shape Amintas came and clownish Corridon Rich Meliboeus made nol smallest sute All these with many moe she did repell Repelde Alexis shed foorth wofull teares Poore Coridon brought gifts she wiegh'd not gifts Rich Meleboeus iudgde her made of flint Amintas dide dispayring in his loue And to be briefe none came but she repeld No sooner had the Chamberlaine of night Put out the lampe and drawne the clowdie vale No sooner did Aurora teene the torch And ope the vale which Vesper latelie shut But secretely vnto her I repairde When both our heards where either bare in field Or new let out but although secretly Yet at the length for what man did not note Her gestes and deeds it came to Thirsis â—are He lik a Gyant all incenst with wrath Did call his Daughter trembling at
now A little boy make thee to stoupe and yeeld Was thou not lately proferd to thy wyfe Mathi as daughter diademe and crowne And now doest like a silly country drudge A shepheards trulle come of so base a stocke What will the Eagle smile vpon a wren Or wil the Lyon looke vpon a mouse And shall Cassander Lord Menalchus sonne Vouchsafe to looke vpon so base a gyrle No foole be not so ignoble in thought Ah but she's faire shees passing beautiful Her eie-delighting shape hath won mine hart Loue is a god respecting no degree Loue is a god and will be honored Loue conquers all things it hath conquered Apollo once it made him be a swaine Yea mightie Mars in armes inuincible It forced hath to lay aside his speare Loue made the sea-god take a Wesils shape Yea mighty Ioue whose rage makes earth to shake Loue made to take the snow-white shape of Bull And shal not then Cassender yeeld to loue He mortall it a conquerour of gods Yeeld yeeld he will Yeeld yeeld he must Necessitie him vrgeth so to doe Then in a rage I rhrew aside my sword I brake my speare impediments to Loue. My Steed my neuer-tyred Steed I â—olde Who had me gaind such far-surpassing fame And to my selfe I smilinglie did say Yeeld Mars to Venus weapons vnto gownes I cast aside my warlike vestimentes I cut mine haire in steed of silken robes I bought a sute of cuntry ruslet cloth A paire of slops I put vpon my legs A leather scrip I hung about my necke And for my palfrey a cut-taile dog I got I bought me sheepe and cotes I was content To be a shepheard to obtaine my loue Or that ynough I might but see my loue But now my selfe a while I meane to leaue Oppressed with a thousand sundrie woes A little will I speake of Floras case Who hauing seene me was incenst with loue She sigh'd foorthwith and iudged me the fairste And beautifulst that euer nature framde She left her mates and thought how she by toyle Extinguish might this new conceaued flame But twas in vaine For as a sparkle falne Among drie straw by chance or withered leaues Is not extinguisht by and by but growes In time into an indelible flame Euen so my Flora into whose chast breast A little sparke of Cupids fire hath chanst Could not out weare it straight but grew at length Into an huge and inextinguible flame What should she do poore wretch no hope at all Had she of getting her desired loue And sooner might she Aetna hill remooue Than cancell it out of her setled mind I am a base and flock-attending drudge And he quoth she an high-conceited Knight Thus therefore snarde in Vulcans priuie net And could with Mars no waies from thence escape She wept she cride she sobd and all at once And fell at last into these wofull tearmes Vnluckie Flora poore distressed gyrle Begotten in some hard and haples houre Borne when some euill vnlucky Planet rulde what greater spite could Fortune haue thee wrought Could gods haue framde thy greater miseries Is thy Diana vnto Venus turnd Thy chastitie to leud and fond desires Hast thou so long bene Vestas vowed Nun And now to Venus doest begin to turne Art thou in loue fond foole whom doest thou loue A stragling Knight some faithlesse run-away What canst thou tel perhaps he hath deceiu'd A number of such wanton gyrles as thou Ah but hees faire What then Doth not the Moth Sooner corrupt a fine than naughtie cloth Hath not the fayrest fruite the sowrest taste And sweetest face oft times the foulest heart Was not Aeneas faire yet in the end Who was more false who proou'd more treacherous What then fond wench wilt thou forwarne all men To shun the sea because it drowned one Wilt thou condemne all men of periurie Because Aeneas falsified his faith O no it cannot be that he is false Oh would I had him were he ne'er so false This said she looked vp and in the East Beheld the shepheards star began to shine Foorthwith she rose and run vnto her flocke Shut them in fold and so retyred home I hauing now prouided for mine art All needfull things sheepe hooke and cottages A dog a bottle and a lether scrip By practise learned how to feed my flocke No sooner had bright Titan lift his head From Tethis lap where quietly he slept But through a lettice Flora vewing light Which came from Ecus as she lay in bed Rose vp and ran vnto her greedy flock And let them lose which bleated for their meat Now sate she downe now followed she her heard But ouer-lookt them with a watchfull eye Not long had Flora been in pleasant fields But I came also not so much to feed My bleating cattle as to feed my selfe I put them foorth but driue them euer neere And neerer to the place where Floras fed Then leauing them alone I bended steps Tow'rds her she watchful fate vpon an hill I faind as though I would haue passed by And praisde her sheep but so that she might heare As free from scab fine feld and passing fat She seeing me so faire and neat a swaine Come neere did quite forget her former loue This is quoth she some rich and comely heard Ile stay no longer time will breed content Returning then I askt her whose they were Where dwelt their owner and what was his name Art ' thou quoth she a feeder in these fields And doest not know who doth possesse these sheepe The sheep can tell behold their owners name Imprinted is vpon their wollie backes Pardon quoth I faire maide mine ignorance My flocke hath not long grased in these bounds But yet much talk of Thirsis haue I heard Euen on the farther side of these huge downes But what are ye his daughter whose sweet forme Is blased through those sheep-resorted plaines Alas poore gyrle how darst thou sit alone Doest thou not feare the Lyons greedy iawes Doest thou not feare the ramping Beare or Woolfe Or in thy loue fearst thou not one that burnes Alas poore gyrle how darst thou sit alone How can I choose but needs I must quoth she Feare all these illes yet must I be content I may not contradict the gods behestes Withstand I cannot fatall destiny The gods and destinie will haue it thus They haue assigned me this poore estate I but quoth I what fortune doth with-hold That Nature milde seemes on you to bestow But will you cause that Fortune also smile Then leaue this single life and be my loue You shall not need to feare fierce winters frosts You shall not stand in feare of sommers heat The Lyons iawes the Woolfe nor greedy Beare Nor any beast shall then make thee affraid Thou shalt be free from all these casualties So saith she shunning vast Charibdâ—s gulfe I should int ' Silla fal as bad or worse Then children come then charge of keeping house Then mickle woes but litle ioyes arise My mother oft hath
his looks What maid quoth he what newes be these I heare Are you in loue with yonder new-come Swaine Haue you repeld so manie honest men And now will haue some vnknowne cogging slaue A stranger meere who whilst your beauty lasts Wil make of you and then he wil be gone And mocke some other as he hath done you Well Ile preuent these euils Ile cut you short Ile kepe my flocke and you shall stay at home Dayes-messenger began now to appeare I rose betimes and wayted for my loue But loe in steed of her old Thirsis came Ay me how lothsome was this aged churle Vnto my sight when I espide him come He walked vp and down and in a rage Lookt towards me as though I had angred him Sixe daies past on and still in steed of her None came to field but that old hateful Carle What Stix What Phlegeton what greater sting Could haue possest Cassanders restles thoughts A mighty masse of dolours vext mine heart A thousand sundry cares opprest my mind Sometimes I thought her father had her vrgde To breake her vowe and take another loue Considering of what force a fathers rage And threatnings was vnto a silly child Sometimes againe I thought vpon the vowes Her giuen faith and loyalty who said When Atlas shrinkes vnder his massie load I will be false to thee and not before Thus hoping and dispairing both at once A shift I found to put me out of doubt I laid aside my countrie Swaines attire And baser weeds vpon me I did put With iags and rags my selfe I did abase A filthy cloth about my head I knit One leg I bolstred out with dyrtie clothes As though it had bene swolne with festred sores A crouch in hand and wallet at my backe So cripple-like I went to Thirsis doore There first I praid and made mine orison As beggers vse before they craue their almes Then crau'd their good will and benenolence In dolefull wise and lamentable sort My Flora who was alwayes ready prest To aide the poore whome Fortune frownde vpon To th' ambrie ran and cut a slunch of bread And cheese she thought a charitable deed Here saith she pray that I may haue my wish Then lookt I vp she foorthwith fetch a sigh And knew I was Cassander her true loue Help my Cassander help me now she said Or Coridon must me enioy thy loue My father said I shall to morrow wed Loue or loue not for time will breede content Nay weel preuent him if thou wilt quoth I In carelesse bed when parents lie at night Vnlocke the doores and secretly come out Ile be preparde Ile carie thee away So weel escape and remedie these euils This said she beckned with her hand as though That I had said did please her very well Then went from me and ran into the house And time it was her mother came apace Then praying for my maister and my Dame I went away still leaning on my crutch But when I came int ' fields out of their sights My crutth my weeds and scrip I threw away Then who had seene me would not haue supposde I had bene hee which halted so ere while Vnto the port I went two ships there found All furnished and readie to lanche out With Palinâ—râ—â— there did I agree To ship vs twaine at dead time of the night Then hoisting sayles without abode or stay To carie vs into my country Greece For thither did the shipmen bend their sayles Then back again without delay I went Preparde an horse and all things verie fit Now Phoebus did vnyoke his fiery horse Now Cinthia gerd her blacke night ruling steeds Old Thirsis came from feeding of his flockes And seeing Flora thus he spake to her Come Mâ—nâ—on quoth he see you be preparde You must to morrow goe vnto the Church And marrie Corridon Ile haue it so Thus shall it be therefore make no excuse I will saith she sweet father sith you bid If you commaund why should I not obey Hereat old Thirsis wondrous glad in mind Sent Corridon these hart reuiuing newes He came and gaue her many a clownish smack Sent for good ale and ioyfully they dranke But now the Pleyades gan to shine on high And wearie lims expected mortall rest Glad Corridon tooke leaue and went away And Thirsis ioyfull laid him downe in bed Halfe part of drousie night was fully spent Nought walkt abroad but shades and griesllie Ghosts Each thing was silent all the field was husht No birds in shades no ecchoes rang in woods Old Thirsis now gan snort and soundlie sleepe And crasie Mepsa lying by his side But Flora mindfull of her promise made Lay wakeful still abandoning all sleepe And hearing them so soundlie snorting both Rose vp opt doores and priuily crept out I caught her vp and mounting on a horse made no delay but hasted to the shore But see what hapt scarce were we on his backe But suddenly our palfrey neighed out Vnhappy neighing Thirsis might it call Who wakening at the snril and sudden noise Cald Flora thinking robbers had been there Vp Flora quoth he looke about the house Bar fast the doores false knaues are neere at hand But Flora was now far ynough from him He rising vp ran foorthwith to her bed And missing her straightway he cryed out Alas poore wretch how shall I liue henceforth The traytor hath my Flora stolne away O gastfull night wast dungeon of sinne Concealing Chaos hider of all vice Nurse of ill actes companion of woes How couldst thou let me sleepe in carelesse bed Whilst my sweet daughter staffe of mine old age Ioy of my life prolongresse of my dayes Is by a villaine falslie from me stolne Ile after him and if I may but once The traitor see then in despight of gods And fortune both these age-shakt bedred lims Shal either bring my sweetest child againe Or els I vowe vnto the highest powers I will not stick to spend my dearest blood This said he tooke an horse and desperate Came posting after vs vnto the port And scarce were we vnhorst and gone aboord But like a Tyger when her tender ones He sees on seas thus raged he on land Stay periurde villaine homicide vniust Lust-breathing traytor giue me my sweet child Come Flora leaue him to reuenging seas Come my sweet child tis I thy father call Ah cruell Tyger flinty-hearted flaue Canst thou thus murther old vnweeldy age I fearing least these fierce outragious tearmes Should mooue the minds of people vnto ruth Made no delay but leaping on the shore Caught in mine armes the swayne an irksome loade And caried him perforce into the ship Not mooued with these miserable words Ah cruell wretch incester pittilesse What wilt thou do first take from me my child Then take me from mine old and aged wife What should I do shal these old age shakt lims Be tost on seas which rather couet rest Shall I now liue amongst some barbarous folke And in some vicious
country lay my bones O take my daughter take her and be gone And let me goe vnto my wife againe Ah my sweet Mepsa who shall hug with thee And what shall now betide my tender flocke This done the shipmen hoisted vp their sayles Plide oares and quickly lanched into deepe All hope was gone now must he needs away Sometimes he railde sometimes he held his peace Poore Flora sate vpon my louing knee And scarslie durst behold her angrie Sire The scowling euen had thrise with dankish mysts Obscurde the day and brought in pitchie night The blushing morne thrise with rose-colloured hue Expeld the night and brought in day againe When cutting through the Caerule salt-sea some With flying pines and plowing Tethis waues Enuious Fate prosperities Archfoe Minding to shew her fickle deity That in her forehead as she dimples had So she had also wrinckles in her front That as she smilde so she could also frowne Now turnde her wheele and wrought our endles woe Securely now between my folded armes Held I my loue the hauen of content When suddenlie a stormie Orion came Blacke hellish mystes the splendent skies obscurde Skies taking now the shape that once they did When princelie Ioue did worke the great deluge Winds flewe abroad burst out from craggie hils And all Eolia then was vp in armes Vast surges rose death-threatning billowes rag'd Our flying pinnesse now mounted to and fro Now downe to Stix now vp to heauen they went Ay me poore wretch thus gan I then crie out Sin-hating powers reformers of all vice Abandoners of euil and cruell actes Cease to pursue with weapons of reuenge Mine haynous and intollerable fact Alas my rigour to old Thirsis showne And Floras rape do follow me by seas If nought but death can satisfie my crime Then take away mine vndeserued life Spare Floras life she hath deseru'd no death This said an huge tempestuous blast of wind Fraught with a mightie garison of waues Laid so hard siege against our fortrest pine That cables crackt and sailes in sunder tare Out cride the keepers now are we vndone Yet fully bent vnto our endlesse wracke Fietce Adria remunified his force A roaring cannon he againe dischargde Which rent our ships against the craggie rockes Then might you see an heart lamenting hap Some hang on boords some swimming in the deep All labouring to saue and keep their liues I held in armes my true and dearest loue Thinking with her to end my lothed life When suddenly we were by fate disioynd I throwne by force all headlong in the seas Yet labouring my life still to preserue For who so wretched but desires to liue These twinding armes caught hold vpon a boord Which drew me to this life-preseruing rocke And as thou didst I found this cottage heer Which hath been some religious house of Gods Nought was in it but bare and naked seats And sea-Gods shapes which thou doest now behold But in this seat this instrument did lie Which was I thinke Apollos Citterne once The storme now ceast I took it in mine hand Descending where thy Wherrie now doth stand There viewed I the qualified waues And looked if some ship I could espie Preseru'd from winds to aide me in distresse For here was neither nourishment nor food To saue my life thus standing on the rocke I with my fingers toucht these twinckling strings No dittie fine but yet a sound it made The sportiue fish enchanted with the sound Did come to me and seemde to leape and play And suffered me to take them in mine hand Admiring at this rare and strange euent I thankt the Gods which such reliefe me sent And sith that Fortune had so cruell been As to bereaue me of my sweetest ioy